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The History of
Icelandic Horses
 All
of the horses found in Iceland today are the descendants
of horses taken there by the Vikings. Space was precious
on the longboats, so only the best horses were selected.
The ancestors of today´s Icelandic horses came from
Northern Scandinavia and the British Isles - in
particular the Dole Horse of Norway and from Britain the
Celtic Pony, the ancestor of the Exmoor and the
Shetland.
In 982AD the Icelandic Parliament passed a law
forbidding the importation of any more horses or ponies
to prevent disease. As a result, all the horses in
Iceland are descended from a relatively small gene pool,
but over the centuries ruthless selection - by man and
nature - has eradicated the faults that might be
expected to occur in such a closely related population.
In addition, it has produced a breed which is
exceptionally hardy and easy to look after, as well as
being of excellent temperament. Even today, any horse
which leaves Iceland can never return.
Icelandics were first brought to Britain to work in the
coal mines as they were small but very strong. However,
these horses were never registered as Icelandics and now
little sign remains of them. A Scottish farmer named
Stuart MacKintosh worked in Iceland and received as
payment a group of horses which he brought to Scotland
in 1956. These formed the basis of a breeding herd which
he used at his trekking centre. Along with his good
Icelandic friend Gunnar Bjarnason, he did a great deal
to try to promote the breed, but met with resistance
from local pony breeders who felt threatened by the
introduction of this "new" breed. The breeding program
produced a promising stallion, Eldur from Alnwickhill
(who was actually imported from Iceland in utero), in
1961 but sadly in 1962 Stuart MacKintosh drowned while
crossing a river in Iceland so he was unable to
appreciate the numerous progeny which resulted.
The trekking and breeding continued under the care of
Stuart´s widow, Margaret Buchanan-Smith, and when she
retired the horses were dispersed. The stallion Eldur (f
Baldur frá Bóndhól, m Rauðka frá Svignaskarði) went to
Caithness, then on to Garry Gualach, an outdoor centre
in Invergarry. John Holman of Stonehaven imported the
stallion Gustur 754 frá Hrafnkellstaðir and a number of
mares, mainly from Ólafsvellir. Along with a couple of
mares from Caithness, and the homebred stallion Þrystur
(f Nasi frá Laugarvatn, m Stjarna frá Ólafsvellir),
these formed the basis of a breeding herd which produced
many excellent horses. One of the Caithness mares was Æg
from Woodhouselee , who was eventually sold to Jackie
Elias of Dorset in Southern England. Jackie knew
Icelandics from her time in Holland, and was very
enthusiastic about them. Thanks to her dedication, and
that of several other people who had "caught the bug",
the idea of forming a society for Icelandics in Britain
was born. In the autumn of 1986 a group of eight
enthusiasts met at Stonehaven for the inaugural meeting
of the Icelandic Horse Society of Great Britain.
Since then
there have been many changes. The centre at Stonehaven
has closed down, and many of the horses went to another
trekking centre in the Pentland Hills near Edinburgh.
Many more horses have been imported, and several more
breeding herds set up around the UK. Icelandics can be
found thoughout the length and breadth of the British
Isles, from the Shetland Islands to the moors of
Cornwall, from Anglesey to Cambridge.
There are around 800 Icelandics now registered with the
IHSGB. These include many imported horses, mostly from
Iceland, and some excellent stallions have been used.
Icelandics are becoming well-known in Britain. In
addition to many individual horses, there are several
thriving areas of high activity for Icelandic horses,
particularly in Southern England and around Edinburgh in
Scotland. IHSGB members give demonstrations at events
all over the country and there have been plentiful
magazine articles and TV appearances. British-bred
horses are popular abroad both as family horses and for
competition.
IHS members give displays at many local and national
shows, including the Royal Bath and West and the Royal
Highland, as well as having stands at the British Equine
Event and the Devon and Midlands Equine Fairs. More
displays and Breed Society stands are in the pipeline -
the IHS has purchased an exhibition trailer to give our
stand a more professional look. There was a huge display
at the Horse of the Year Show, with a team of
professional riders with Champion horses from Iceland
and Europe, and there has even been a
competition and display on ice.
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